Tour to make historic start in Corsica

The 2013 Tour de France – the 100th edition of cycling’s most prestigious race - will start in Corsica, event director Christian Prudhomme confirmed today.

It will be the first time that the island off the south coast of France will welcome the Tour.

Corsica is currently the only region of metropolitan France to have never been visited by the race.

According to the event’s official website www.letour.fr, full details of the Grand Depart will be revealed on December 6 in Ajaccio.

Staging the Tour on the island represents a new logistical challenge for the organisers, but Corsica has played host to numerous races in the past, including the Criterium International.

The Tour is continuing to explore new ground and previous Grand Departs have been proposed in western Europe, including Scotland, while interest has even previously been received from as far afield as the United States and Japan.